Following the death of bass player Paul Gray we get the low-down on Slipknot, the groundbreaking metal outfit he co-founded.

1. The band would refer to their die-hard fans as ‘maggots’. Drummer Joey Jordison first used the term when he saw the fans “feeding of the music” in their hundreds

2. The word ‘hate’ is written on all Mick Thomson’s guitars

3. Bassist Paul Gray, who died yesterday, once defended the band’s decision to wear mask at all times by saying: “You can only stare at a clown mask so long. After a few minutes it's no big deal anymore. So people start paying attention to the music instead of what the clown is doing, or what he is wearing, or how cool his spikey hair is.”

4. The sample in the beginning of the song (sic) is taken from Al Pacino’s character in Carlito’s Way. He says: ‘Here comes the pain’

5. The band’s DJ Sid Wilson works outside of the band under the pseudonym DJ Starscreen. He is also British

6. Percussionist Shaun 'The Clown' Crahan infamously kept a dead crow in a jar behind his kit and would inhale the rotting carcass' fumes mid-performance to maintain the vive

7. The band were known not to wash their masks for an entire tour so they could carry the sweat (and in some cases vomit) with them to future shows to invoke the spirit of the tour

8. Sid Wilson made a name for himself in the band’s early days by setting himself and on fire during live shows

9. There have been 13 members of Slipknot since the band started, including one member who dressed as a baby

10. Here’s a clip of the band tearing it up on the David Letterman show